College considers the possibility of Strong males

Mike Alberti Staff Writer

Ever since Vassar became co-educational in 1969, Strong House has been the only exclusive, single-sex dormitory on campus, but many students, especially those who do not live in Strong, would be hard-pressed to explain why an all-female dorm exists at Vassar. There are myths, of course—that the Seven Sisters consortium requires it and that it is stipulated in the College’s constitution—but these are false.

According to Director of Residential Life Luis Inoa, roughly half of the freshmen placed in Strong each year do not request it on their housing forms. A large number of those freshmen choose to move out of Strong at the beginning of the year. “All this begs the question: If the demand isn’t there, is there really a need for an all-female dorm? Saying that it’s a tradition here isn’t enough for me,” said Inoa.

To answer that question, Residential Life sent a survey to Strong residents on Nov. 1. The survey asked residents to explain why they elected to live in Strong, and if they would prefer Strong to remain all-female, turn co-ed, or have some defined mixture of co-ed and all-female spaces in the building.

The results, according to Inoa, indicated that the majority of Strong residents want Strong to remain all-female, but this opinion varies by class year. The vast majority of freshmen who responded would prefer Strong to become co-ed, whereas the majority of juniors want it to stay all-female. Not all residents responded to the survey.

Strong House President Heidi Genrich ’08 spoke to this discrepancy of opinions held by upperclassmen and freshmen: “When I was a freshman, I had no interest in living in the weird single-sex dorm, but living here was just really great. It’s just a nice, tight little community that’s really supportive.”

Strong and Raymond House Advisor Laura Dicke organized a meeting for Strong residents on Sunday, Nov. 5 to allow them to voice their opinions on the matter. Several residents listed the reasons they liked living in Strong and why an all-female space is important on campus. Many of the reasons had to do with quiet and cleanliness, and the absence of “drunken ruckus,” according to Dicke. But there was also a greater underlying argument about empowerment.

“A lot of people say things like, ‘It’s a nice dorm, it’s a clean dorm,’” said Genrich. “For me, these aren’t the real reasons. I really think that we live in a masculine world and young women are taught to be submissive and to take on secondary roles to their male counterparts. Having an all-female community really gives us a chance to develop our own voice.”

Others voiced alternative views. “I just feel like this a co-educational institution,” said Miriam Greenstein ’08, who is on the Vassar Student Association (VSA) Residential Advisory Committee. “If people want single-sex, then they can go to Smith.”

Strong House Vice President Lorrette Fisher ’09 said that while she acknowledges the arguments on both sides, “The cultivation of an all-female community empowers women and recognizes that gender inequities still persist today. By dismantling the all-female residence on campus, we run the risk of denying the existence of ongoing gender issues.”

Genrich said, “What needs to happen is for us to better communicate why we have Strong and the strengths of having an all-female dorm on campus.”

Inoa agreed, saying, “Until this year with the House Team mission statement, there isn’t anything in any language that formally links Strong to the advancement of women. Having a nice, clean, quiet living arrangement isn’t enough to justify the fact that we can’t fill the space. Even for the women who request to live there, are they really signing up for the advancement of women?”

“I come from a place which makes me a bit wary of affinity-based housing, particularly when we don’t have an explicit connection and reason for why we have it,” continued Inoa. “Before I was here, Vassar used to have an all-African American house. Is this separation helpful or hurtful?”

When Vassar became co-ed in 1969, the College decided to keep Strong as an all-female house because many women were uncomfortable with integrating men into the residence halls, and the College feared a decline in enrollment. For the next decade, all dorms at the College were separated by sex based on floor, and bathrooms were not co-ed. Currently, all dorms have co-ed bathrooms, and men and women are not separated by floor.

This year’s Strong House Team is taking steps to explain to the campus why Strong is important. “In past years, there was an attempt to hide the fact that Strong was the girly dorm, and last year and especially this year we’ve made a point of doing programming that is specifically oriented towards women,” said Genrich.

Residential Life’s next step is to follow up with a series of focus groups, in which residents can speak directly to the Residential Life Advisory Committee for or against the change. “The Committee needs to make some decisions as to how to involve the rest of the campus in providing input,” said Inoa.

Senior Associate Dean of the College Raymond Parker, who is on the Residental Life Advisory Board, said, “Although I think we can accommodate single-sex housing in one form or another, it seems to me that if we can’t fill the dorm, then making students live in an environment that they don’t want is not the best situation for everyone.”

Inoa recognized that having an all-female dorm ensures that at least one member of the VSA Council will be a woman. Currently, two of the 10 house presidents are women, Genrich and Lathrop House President Amalia Sax-Bolder ’08.

Strong House Secretary Camille Friason ’09 reiterated the importance of keeping Strong all-female, and pointed out that it is a deciding factor for some prospective students. She said, “For some parents, the opportunity to live in an all-women’s residence hall is a determining factor of their support for their daughter to attend Vassar. They feel like it’s a safer environment for their daughters to grow in.”